As many as 13,534 cases were registered in the country under the Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961 last year, a 25% rise compared to the cases registered in 2020 (10,046), the data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has revealed. Up to 4,594 of these cases were registered in Uttar Pradesh — the highest in the country. However, there has been a slight decline of 3.85% in the number of dowry-related deaths in 2021, which recorded a total of 6,589 such cases, compared to 6,843 cases in 2020.
With 2,222 registered cases, the highest number of dowry deaths in the country has also been recorded by Uttar Pradesh. Among the southern states, Telangana recorded the highest number of such deaths (175), while Kerala registered the least (9).
Meanwhile, Karnataka registered 1,845 cases under the Dowry Prohibition Act last year, highest among the southern states, while Telangana had the lowest (5). Kerala, however, saw a sharp rise in the number of cases by nearly 12 times when compared to 2020. Andhra Pradesh, in the meantime, saw a steep decline by nearly 97%.
According to the NCRB data, 330 cases of dowry deaths were closed due to lack of evidence last year, while two were transferred to a different state or investigating agency. The chargesheeting rate stood at 41.3%. Among the cases under the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1,086 were closed because of insufficient evidence, and 49 were transferred to a different state or agency. The chargesheeting rate was 35.05%.